Big Lake High School held a REAL event Tuesday morning at the high school auditorium. Eleven students attended along with a number of business and organizations who are helping kids prepare for the workforce following graduation.

REAL stands for Relevant Experience Through Apprenticeship Learning. It is a nationally-acclaimed college and career readiness program that prepares students for life after high school by connecting learning in the classroom with real-world applications in the workplace. 

REAL classes include:

• Youth Apprenticeship - students are matched with an employer in their chosen field, and are employed by the organization under the supervision of a skilled mentor. Students attend work, earn a wage on the job, and complete high school credits in the process. YA has had many students placed with companies who continue to employ them after graduation (and some who have covered college costs with an agreement that the student will continue to work for the company);

• CEO (Creating Entrepreneurial Opportunities) - this class is for students interested in starting their own business one day. Students spend their class time touring local businesses and learning from company owners the process they went through to get to where they are today. Students will create a business plan and work through the steps required to start their own business;

• On-the-Job Training - this unique class allows students the opportunity to make their job part of the classroom experience. Students attend class one afternoon per week at Wright Technical Center and spend the remaining time at their place of employment; 

• Work Experience - this class is available to our special education students looking to gain valuable work place experience.

The 11 students who signed up are: Olivia Stockham (Big Lake Schools Kids Club); Tyler Dehmer (Collins Brothers Towing); Hannah Strom (Liberty Bank); Wyatt Christian (New Look Contracting); Sydney Marotz (New Creations Learning Center); Blake Conavatti (TGK Automotive Specialists); Johnathan Larson (TGK Automotive Specialists); Aubri Parson (Keller Lake Commons Assisted Living); Kammory Josewski (Keller Lake Commons Assisted Living); Spencer Vold (Lisi Medical Remmele); Westin Offerman (Lisi Medical Remmele);